Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” [John 14:6]
Faith must be in the Lord Jesus Christ alone for salvation.
Jesus also said, we must believe that he is God who came in the flesh as our Savior.
“I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins” [John 8:24]
Why is believing in Jesus absolutely necessary?
Since all mankind are sinners, the holiness of God demands that he separate himself from sinful man – and also requires death as a penalty for man. God bound himself to the principal of death for sin.
Without the shedding of blood (the giving of a life) there is no forgiveness from the penalty of death. [Hebrews 9:22]
Only by the shedding of blood can there be fellowship with a holy God.
In Old Testament times the sacrifice of animals was a temporary remedy for sin under “the law”. However, it was not sufficient to satisfy forever the sin of mankind.
Neither can any ordinary man become a sacrifice for another because all deserve eternal death for their own sins.
In order to provide a suitable sacrifice, God manifested himself in flesh through the man Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is the only sinless man who has ever lived, so he is the only One who did not deserve to die – and the only One who could be a perfect substitute.
God does not excuse our sins, but he inflicted the death penalty for our sins on the innocent Jesus Christ.
The death of Jesus became the means by which God could pardon our sins without violating his holiness and justice. [Romans 3:23-25a]
That is why there is no salvation without faith in Jesus Christ and what he did on the cross – shedding his precious blood giving his life for ours.
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. [Acts 4:12]
To be continued. . .